In Photos: The Life of Birds

Colonising the land, sea and air, could birds be the greatest group of animals on Earth?

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Attenborough and Terns

Sir David Attenborough presents a piece to camera in amongst a colony of sooty terns. Birds are one of his favourite subjects and Sir David jumped at a chance to make a series on them.

Archaeopteryx

Sir David Attenborough sat next to a fossil of Archaeopteryx, the sensational discovery that provided the link between dinosaurs and birds.

Attenborough and Kea

New Zealand is rare in that it has been dominated by birds until human travellers introduced domestic mammals. Some of them have even accepted a completely terrestrial lifestyle, like this kea, a parrot.

Shoebill

The shoebill, or whale headed stork, is an imposing bird. Sir David Attenborough would come to film this impressive bird again in his series Africa.

Attenborough and Wandering Albatross

Wandering albatrosses perform complex mating behaviour which include fencing with their beaks, as Sir David Attenborough is observing here. They are also the bird with the largest wingspan in the world.

Attenborough and Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds have the unique ability to hover and fly in every direction and almost any angle.

Attenborough and Ostrich Eggs

Ostriches lay the largest eggs in the world although there have been other birds with larger eggs in our recent history.

Frigate Bird

Travelling in Darwin's footsteps to the Galapagos islands, Sir David Attenborough saw frigate birds which are able to inflate their throat sacs. The bright red colouring is a signal to potential mates.